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There are many strong and energy-filled conservatives and Republicans in Hawaii. Thank you. The Hawaii Republican Party can be better.

Format note: beginning this month, when we name legislators, we’ll give their ACU rating in parenthesis. 100 is conservative, 0 is liberal. Explanation at www.conservative.org. 2014 is the first-time ratings of Hawaii legislators from the respected American Conservative Union, hosts of CPAC.

MORE when we have the rest of the story: HIRA eblast tells of HRP deceit and deception, and suggests donors send funds to candidates until HQ becomes a credible organization with competent leaders. Instead of raising funds for elections or recruiting to fill the 50% districts without leaders, R/H/L call a meeting to throw HIRA’s district-elected Montes off the State Cmte. HIRA readers respond “Does HQ think they are doing well?” “Only $2300 raised in June. R/H/L have done more than HIRA to harm HRP fundraising. How can HIRA, or anything, make it worse?” “Rohlfing says members should NOT contribute to candidates.” “This is the removal of free speech“. “Firing a district chair won’t solve their problem – unity, funds, organization, spending.” “The lawyer Rohlfing cited the wrong rules section. 312 is ‘Residence’ but he meant to use the Purity Pledge with section 316 ‘Removal“.

–I don’t necessarily agree with ALL our readers. “Had no idea the party was so screwed up. I thought Fritz would do a good job.“ “We’ve known for years that Rohlfing doesn’t really do anything. Worse, he nor anyone else down there REALLY cares – can’t run a volunteer organization with people who only give lip service.“ “Where is the 4th of July Republican picnic?“ (There wasn’t one) “No July 4th invites for you from Hellrich or Rolfing!“ “I was wondering what happened to HIRA, now I know. I have heard nothing from Kauai’s new chair. Just silence.“ “I saw your notes about HIRA laying off the HRP. I’m not sure it’s done any good. Although HIRA tweeks some folks off, I agree with them and support them. SOMEBODY needs to hold HRP accountable.“ “Crackpots is as crackpots does.“ “The GOP is hopeless here. Too bad!“ “It is hard to give you input when you are writing the truth…I am disappointed in the drama Kings and Queens of the HRP… in today’s society many will not or cannot stand on PRINCIPLES…When the few do, these drama people wonder what happened…“

-Pleased, and honored. Appointed to 2015-16 NRA Military and Veterans Affair Committee, Chairman Ollie North. Last time, first from Hawaii on an NRA cmte. Now, first to Mil & Vet Affairs. Look forward to contributing to secure our civil (gun) rights and support NRA military affairs.

–I don’t necessarily agree with ALL our readers. “their perception at HQ is that elections are won simply by coding into a computer the number of people on a voter list, versus political priming which involves a strategic marketing campaign and a dedicated issue advocacy effort.“ “Thanks for always sharing. What a GOP mess.“ “You won’t be getting any invites to a July 4th party or thanksgiving dinner from Pat Saiki.“ “Really irritated over reliving what went down with Rules!“ “LMAO“ “If Pew poll shows Jews are so well thought of, why is there so much hatred towards them.“ “I now live in the Red state of GA. Could not care less about the People’s Democratic Republic of Hawaii.“ “I was elected to the rules committee yet was not before or since the Convention ever contacted by anyone regarding any rules committee meetings.” “Republicans never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.“ “Nobody at HQ cares enough (to keep us informed).“ “District chairs were more enthusiastic until they were not given the right to know anything or vote on decisions. Why bother?“ From the girlfriend of the guy who accosted me at convention “You really should leave…..the islands!“ We gave a shout out to 2ndA supporters “What about strong and energy filled pro gun anti Hillary Democrats?“

-Broken rules. Chair failed to present budget within a month of election. Reader “Chair must submit draft to State Committee in 30 days for review and discussion by state committee.“ Now two months: no budget, also missed requirement for strategic & finance plan. Eight months into the election cycle and we have no plan. Every election hotwash, the first critique is “We need to begin earlier.” Same for 2016.

-Rohlfing has 4/16 neighbor island district chairs ON PAPER + 28/35 for HNL = 32/51 or only 63% districts represented. Some already quit. Mensch, Powell, Yoder and Honolulu chair should not be seated on Exec or State Cmte until they up their game. College R’s Rohr has a State Cmte vote but has no college Rs.

-Good that candidates are being sought, 101-level training is taking place. Bad is that HQ, specifically candidate vice chair Marumoto, is not involved, is disinterested and excluded. Several, some competing, groups on Oahu, another on Kauai. None are working with or receiving assistance from HQ, Marumoto or coordinated campaign vice Hickling.

–Marumoto interviewed by Augustin on Aiona’s radio show …. clueless. No idea which candidates are being recruited, which are already working, or what plans HRP has to prepare candidates. “I’m not on the island much,” Marumoto could name six of the only seven R house members.

-More post-session House caucus in-fighting between conservatives and Fukumoto’s liberal faction of our small minority caucus. Ds in-fighting (see Senate Leader Ousted). The fight nationally for the ‘soul’ of the R party continues between conservatives and liberals (self-described ‘moderates’). Hawaii conservatives are apparently laying off HRP to see if Rohlfing+team can be effective and active with a message and plan – so far, not.

-Vice Hickling, self-described ‘geek,’ …. Hits the wrong button and sends open email that he, Mukk and Rohlfing can’t figure out how to email HRP’s 7800 member addresses. Incredulous members “WTF is he thinking letting everyone know we’re screwed up?” “Only 7800 email addresses?” Hour later, Hickling resends to the entire State Cmte that he can’t figure out his address book, apologizes for sending his mail to everyone. Two MORE cmte members write some form of ‘Houston, we have a problem.’ A month later … Hickling hits the wrong button again. Ugh.

-With HRP AWOL, an activist scheduled a pre-Independence Day event, ostensibly for HNL County though chair-less HNL county wasn’t informed. HQ cannot work their eblast program (a limited blast finally on June 28), so activists are relying on personal email lists. OLRW Thomas endorses the event, then prohibits OLRW from assisting. Can’t tell who is in charge or where the funds are going. HRP said authorized events have the ‘Raised in Hawaii, Stays in Hawaii’ seal … this event doesn’t.

HRP is unable to challenge Democrats and liberals on ideological positions until we solve our internal and administrative issues. We need a conservative, competent, committed, organized, manned, and funded HRP, with committed leaders. Republicans must first fix their house.

-Took Rohlfing and HNL county five weeks for this in-house solution. In a family takeover, 1. Rohlfing’s Romney team member Fale (he) is secretly appointed HNL County chair (not yet announced by HRP), by-passing the county vice chairs you elected only two months prior. Fale didn’t run for the position, didn’t attend county convention, was not a county officer, skipped state convention. Invisible since losing to Riviere, he played king-maker by telling Pouha to vote for Fukumoto as House leader over Tupola. Simultaneously, 2. Rohlfing hires Romney team member Fale (she) as “temporary” state Executive Director. Takes a month to find a ‘temp’ and Rohlfing still has to find ‘somebody’ for ED, already eight months into the cycle. Fale (she) also NOT announced by HQ but her FB post publicly gives up the HRP priorities with a chart in a photo background.

-HRP website, STILL not current. No events. State cmte meeting posted for Sunday July 12 (missed the 2nd quarter meeting, another broken rule) along with Maui & Big Island having meetings during church hours. A five-weeks-after-the-fact blog entry announces Rohlfing’s election, first post since February. Cute: they kept Saiki’s chair statement, changed the heading to “Past chair statement,’ but current chair doesn’t have one two months after election. Half the Home Page links inop. Neutral LLIFE is back, titled ‘LLIFE principles’ but it links to the 2010 Platform (no 2014 or even 2012 version). No Couch or Pine (R?) shown with elected officials. No district chair list or contact info, no contact info for county officers, no executive director. To find your Big Island district chair you (they don’t actually have any), or to even call your Big Island half-county chair, you must call HQ “and leave a message.” STILL missing half the ‘leaders’ photos: Fontaine photo for Maui (gone since March) with no photo of Powell (elected in March) who is listed as the Oahu (they might mean Honolulu) chair. Big Island is still a half-county chair. Saiki changed name to Republican Party of Hawaii but site has Rules of the Hawaii Republican Party and Resolutions of the Hawaiian Republican Party, with no resos since 2013.

Quick Hits:

– HQ website has Rohlfing’s first State Cmte meeting on July 12 …. Sunday. It is NOT, but they are having difficulty posting to Saturdays.

– SA Borreca “This year marks 61 years that the Democrats have been running operations in Hawaii.”

– Dale Evans “MALIA Z is on [Hamada] every Tuesday at 8:10-8:30 a.m.“

– Health Connector “is shutting down because it has not been able to generate the revenue to operate.”

– Not news. CB and SA Emails indicate “Caldwell overstated the severity of the situation.” In common-speak, Caldwell lied about taxes raising 40%.

– Between 18M to 30M, or more, people directly affected by the Chinese hack of OPM and other government agencies. They are most likely STILL hacking.

– The next President makes three, maybe four, SCOTUS appointments. THAT is what this is all about.

– Roberts, like Souter before him, is a Republican-appointed bust (also Kennedy). David Barton “The Supreme Courts decree on marriage will become a club to bludgeon the sincerely-held rights of religious conscience.“ Wallbuilders Opinion

-PURITY PLEDGE, wrap up. Rohlfing proposed this HRP reso which allows Rohlfing/Hellreich/Liu (R/H/L) to administratively eliminate State Cmte elected officers who disagree with them. HRP Purity Pledge. HIRA “Rather than go after Democrats, the state committee put its effort into fighting fellow Republicans.“ Comments: Co-leader of the RNCC Conservative caucus. “Typical liberal intolerance.“ Congressional Staffer Not sure what is funnier ….the fact they wasted an entire day drafting this email, or that they felt the need to defend Jeff Flake. Hysterical. Well played. Voicemail from a national reporter Ha. Wow. You got people rattled, huh? Mainland NCM Congratulations for becoming too effective to ignore.

-Reader “Thank you so very much for all you do in trying to get our Hawaii Republican party straightened out so it represents the values it should be. The fact that you obviously spend soooooo much time in trying to straighten the party out speaks volumes about how much you care about getting Hawaii’s government back to a point where it truly represents the people and not the special interests it has come to represent.“ This reflects thanks to all who help to end the losing HRP status quo.

-Rs elect party leaders who do nothing and support legislators who sell out Rs with get-along votes, but they get upset when those ‘leaders’ are held accountable. First Step is admitting you have a problem.

-Is HIRA failing by NOT holding the ineffective, liberal party and caucus leaders accountable? To test the theory, HIRA laid off HRP since April. Are you feeling more confident? Are you comfortable with the funds, volunteers, and resources coming to the party? Are you receiving more GOP information? Do you see the organization growing with excitement? Do you have contact information for your precinct/district chair and to get others involved? Is HRP succeeding while HIRA gives them a pass?

-HIRA laid off our ineffective, get-along R legislators since March. Did you get a favorable return on investment (ROI) from the funds, volunteer effort, support and tax dollars/salary you gave our legislators and their staffs? Do you even know what they did, how they voted, why none of their bills passed and few were even heard in cmte? Are you convinced that the current legislators earned your support going forward?

-Fukumoto. Readers: “Being lectured by a ‘kid’ who quoted Lincoln completely out of context to justify her compromising on principles to ‘get things done,’ and admonished us who believe that standing up for principles and moral issues are how we will win.“ “She’s just voting to maintain her seat.” “It’s not like her votes really count.” “She believes the 5 yr extension of the GET was a good compromise.” “She agreed the dispensary bill had a lot of issues, but she still voted yes.“ “She has no backbone or spine for her beliefs, if she has any.“ “Change the status quo? She is the status quo!“

-To Hemmings (google him) “Until we are an opposition party that at least ACTS like an opposition party with principle and fortitude, there is no need or value in complaining about (TMT) protesters, Ige’s handling of this situation, an Occupy-type movement, or really anything of importance in Hawaii. Until supporters of the status-quo, get-along, faux-opposition stop enabling our R ‘leaders,’ we’ll get nowhere.“

-Fight for the family. Duffy “There is a militant movement with a terrifying agenda for marriage and family that involves sweeping away the time-tested and true order so they can bring in their new radical order. This new order is not based on nature or God’s revelation to man, but on man’s attempt to become himself god by reordering sexuality, the family structure, and society itself.“

-Alaska Republican Assembly “Military Base Elmendorf-Richardson is hosting a Drag Queen LGBT event. Those who have made the incredibly unwise decision to forcibly remove faith values from the U.S. Military and then fill the resultant values void with homosexuality are making a coordinated assault on the very foundation our civilization is built upon.“

-Make HQ tell you about the (free to you) RNC training. “Republican Leadership Initiative provides activists the opportunity to develop organizing skills and cultivate an extensive volunteer network. Individuals are encouraged to apply for the six-week Fellowship. If admitted, they will engage in extensive training workshops equipping them with the skills needed to function as professional field organizers.“ RLI Request

–OCare/Health Connector. Disaster. $250M for a third of the necessary enrollment, a quarter of the expected enrollment. A broken Hawaii has to buy in to Federal system. Legislature has to allot MORE funds. RNC, nationally “Another Round Of Double-Digit Rate Hikes Looms.“ Ds want single-payer. Theilen, Ward, Fontaine voted FOR Connector.

-Meadows, House Freedom Caucus, one of 34 Rs who bucked Boehner on TPA is “angry at “a culture of punishment and fear” created by [Boehner]. “The leadership team wants to create a culture of punishment and fear without a culture of debate and dialogue.” Same as HRP.

-Chenoweth “If you can’t hang in a pair of heels doing a red carpet, then you shouldn’t be in show business.”

There are many strong and energy-filled conservatives and Republicans in Hawaii. Thank you. The Hawaii Republican Party can be better. Read on.

2015 legislative session wrapping. Saiki’s only policy email to membership is to chastise Schatz for not meeting with Netanyahu, and she sent RNC members her hit piece ‘Who is Willes Lee?’ No press conference, no legislative agenda or opposition. No statement about HB459, or tax increases, or rail over-run, or… anything. No voter registration drive. No membership effort. Nothing to justify her many fundraising letters or robocalls.

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The Rationale for “Everything Political”

Writing to conservatives & Republicans, mostly in Hawaii, these reports chronicle HRP’s story with enormous amounts data and solutions. My perspective is that of conservative, Republican, former State Party Chairman & RNC member now working with local and national conservative organizations. These reports augment what you should hear from HRP, what is not on your radar, or what you need to research. Ask your party leaders to act, or continue to lose. We won't always agree but we should be informed. Hawaii conservatives should know they are not alone.